The Porcupine Mining District was established in November of 1898 after S.W. Mix and two of his friends discovered gold near the Porcupine River. The three men staked claims and by 1899 $50,000 in gold had been recovered and the town site of Porcupine had 200 residents. The Porcupine Trading Company eventually bought all the original claims and built a flume to divert the river. In 1905 the Porcupine Trading Company flume and all mining operations were destroyed by flooding. The flume was rebuilt several times between 1907-1917 by both the Porcupine Trading Company and the Alaska Corporation, with the last flume surviving until 1936.

Herbert Horace Draper first worked as a photographer with W.H. Case in the photo studio of Case and Draper. As partners, Case and Draper followed the excitement of the Klondike Gold Rush and moved to Skagway in 1898 where they both worked until around 1908. The partnership ended in 1907 and by 1908 Draper was operating as Draper and Co., based primarily in Skagway.